As promised, Sabo got a hot dog for our anniversary on Wednesday. Other than a visit to the Sabo'hood dog park, the first in while, we otherwise just stayed in and 'cocooned'... just like we did exactly a year ago. Gotta that Sabo !!!1!

As for the mysterious upcoming Sabo Big Weekend™... well I'm going to delay that announcement again... but I'll do so next weekend, I promise. This weekend Sabo & me are going to LA for another IWW meeting on Saturday. Sunday, weather permitting as the forecast is for rain all weekend, we plan on getting advance hike segment #11 in. This is the most poignant part of the whole mystery.

Well, for this Sabo Big Weekend™, first he's going to get religion... as we're going to the Mormon Temple. We're going to conclude going to all the parks in the University City area. I'm going to take Sabo to those duck ponds I promised. We're going on a return visit to a particular dog park. We're going to try, once again, to visit the Tecolote Canyon Nature Center. We're going to take a hike in San Clemente Canyon. And... we're going to revisit the Morena Club (Dive Bar #6), the Coronado Brewery tasting room, and Sabo's favorite restaurant... Bull's BBQ.

So, I'm sure our (perhaps singular) readers are wondering... WTF BBQ, Sabo Big Weekends™ are supposed to have a flippin' theme. What possible theme encompasses all these advance hike segments, and also includes all the miscellaneous above??

Spoiler:

Sabo's Complete Trail Guide to the Tri-Canyon Parks

Yep, it's the big enchilada.

What's the Sabo Twist® ???/? Well... he's not only going to hike the main trails, but also to every trail head, and on every alternate route. This is why I could confidently predict this would be the best Sabo Big Weekend™ ever. The previous reigning champion (see post #53) featured only one of these canyons... and that wasn't even on the main park trails.

Obviously, this project will take more than a weekend. In fact, it's our background hike project for the winter and into the spring. This last week we already got advanced segments #11 in (Saturday), #12 (Tuesday), #13 (Wednesday), and #14 (this morning) done. But this being the official debut weekend... we're going to do it up right, and feature some symbolic segments.

The three canyons are Rose, San Clemente, and Tecolote. San Clemente Creek is tributary to Rose Creek and the two canyons/parks connect. Tecolote Creek is a separate small watershed just to the south & east. So... we're going to symbolically hike parts of all three canyons. The Tri-Canyon parks share that Nature Center, we're going to try to visit it too... as it's the symbolic HQ of the parks. Hopefully, we'll also get three other (no longer advanced) hike segments in... to pick up the pace, and give it that proper Sabo Big Weekends™ feeling. The other attractions just happen to be along the way.

Well, for this Sabo Big Weekend™, first he's going to get religion... as we're going to the Mormon Temple. We're going to conclude going to all the parks in the University City area. I'm going to take Sabo to those duck ponds I promised. We're going on a return visit to a particular dog park. We're going to try, once again, to visit the Tecolote Canyon Nature Center. We're going to take a hike in San Clemente Canyon. And... we're going to revisit the Morena Club (Dive Bar #6), the Coronado Brewery tasting room, and Sabo's favorite restaurant... Bull's BBQ...

Before we get to this Sabo Big Weekend™, I should blog about last weekend's Sabo Big Weekend™. Well, due to circumstances outside of Sabo's control and approval... none of the above happened. One issue was that I've come to realize that I'm going to need to upgrade my map-making skilz. This is primarily for my perpetually stillborn (it seems) railroad history website... but it would also come in handy blogging Sabo's hikes. So... I spend some quality time learning about using My Maps @ Google.

Sabo was surely annoyed that I was spending his time working on my blogging skilz regarding his hikes... instead of actually taking him on new hikes. Of course, the same kinda thing happens when I'm actually typing these blog posts... and Sabo comes over and gives my typing hand the 'nose nudge'. Sigh... such is a blogged dog's life.

Anyways... we did finally make it to the Mormon temple on Wednesday, and yesterday we revisited the Doyle Park dog run. Other than that, this Sabo Big Weekend™ will be rescheduled for a future date.

This Sabo Big Weekend™ was both easy to plan, and easy to blog the plans ... as it's the exact same road-trip we took six months afo to AZ. The only difference is we're going to a spring training game in Peoria, instead of a regular season game in Phoenix. In fact... we;re hitting the road as soon as I hit the 'post' button here !!!1!

Dog Day - March 14
Bring man's best friend to the game and sit in the PAW-tio section! Lawn seating only. Advance purchase price is $4 per dog and $8 per person. Day of game purchase is $5 per dog and $10 per person. Dog tickets are available at the Ticket Office windows only. 100% of dog admission supports the Arizona Humane Society. AHS will be onsite with information on their programs and services, merchandise and even a few adorable adoptable dogs! ...

Happy First Full Day of Spring !!!1!
(Spring started Friday, March 20, 2015 @ 3:45 PM PDT)

Quote:

Originally Posted by [MissileDog]

Is it a three day weekend if an equinox falls on Friday?

Yes, of course. The same goes for the solstices...

Of course it's a three day weekend, as it's the equinox.

However... we spent Thursday evening with TWC techs over, most of Friday on the phone with TWC, and have TWC techs scheduled to come over Saturday morning too. [Edit Saturday PM ~~ everything's working again now !!!1!]. I'm also coordinating the gate repairs I blogged about quite a while ago, as the chihuahua next door is back. So... since it's mostly over already anyways, I'm not going to declare it an official Sabo Big Weekend™. But... I did promise Sabo I'd at least take him on a good hike this weekend as consolation for being stuffed into the office off and on. We'll go do another segment for Sabo's Complete Trail Guide to the Tri-Canyon Parks.

And surprisingly... video too. Don't know how, but I took the above clip by mistake. Oops. Wow... Sabo goes all multi-media, interactively mapped, and cross-linked (my new map links back here to the Sabo-blog) all in one post. Well... it's just the kinda thing to expect, I guess, here in 2015 The Year of Sabo !!!1!

Almost needless to say, but... Sabo had an epic Big AZ Vacation !!!1! Of course, why wouldn't he... it was pretty much just like the last one, which was epic too. So... I'll just blog the differences here...

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

Sabo had an epic Zonie Summer

Winter Vacation !!!1!

Friday morning we started out around 10 AM7:30 AM on our longest driving segment: north on I-15 from San Diego to Barstow, then east on I-40 to Kingman. We only briefly stopped twice...

To mix it up for Sabo, who so enjoys watching out the front windshield, I took six detours down the back-roads on this whole trip. This made it majority non-freeway, although according to Google Maps it only added ~10 miles (see map). On the way up we stopped in Twenty-Nine Palms (for gas) and Laughlin NV. I gave Sabo some 'paw time' in Laughlin... but he didn't give a poop about now having visited Nevada too.

Quote:

... This would establish a motif for the trip. Sabo spent most of the driving time standing on the center console, leaning against my right shoulder, and alertly watching traffic out of the front window... of course, periodically he would retire to the back seat, where his nest was set up, for a short nap. Also, between the cars & hotels... Sabo... never having direct yard access... he didn't have the slightest problem... of course...

Sabo still liked watching traffic, and resting his head on my shoulder, this time... but he did spend a lot more time curled up in his nest. Maybe last time was his first ever long road trip... and this time he's a little more jaded? He was the perfect little 'road warrior', like always.

Kingman Depot hosts a model railroad & museum

Quote:

... We arrived in Kingman, ~5pm @ 105 degrees3pm, 81℉ outside (according to the car)... Sabo & me headed down the street to Kingman Park, where there was a very nice pair of fenced dog runs... We spent most of that evening at my new favorite dive bar in Kingman: The Sportsmen's Club... Saturday... Sabo... & me went to the Kingman Park dog runs...

But I didn't have time for me to stop and play poker in Laughlin... as I wanted to see the inside of the historic Kingman Depot ($2, no dogs). Also, it was clarified that the Sportsmen's Club is dog friendly inside at night only. The out-back 'smoking room' (patio) is always dog friendly however. Sabo hung out both places. It was much cooler in Kingman this time for Sabo's two trips to Kingman Park.

View from Kingman Park dog run, Kingman AZ

(Sabo & me passed the same train in the background hours earlier in Amboy, CA.
I remember thinking it must be 'lost' because it had all UP power,
including a 'patched' SP in front, on the BNSF Trans-Con)

Quote:

...Then we drove south on US-95AZ-93 [The US-95 reference was a typo last time. Both times we took AZ-93 ~ MD] to the Phoenix area... In TempePeoria, we met up again with D... at the Mission Palms HotelPeoria Sports Complex... ~5pm @ 107 degreesnoon, 92℉...

My brotherman D, driving in from Lake Havasu, met up with us in Peoria before Sabo's Padres game. The dog zone ($10 people, $5 dogs) was the right field lawn. Which, although it had a great view... was hot this day. Really hot. Sabo, like all the dogs, quickly realized the only shade was lying behind their people... which is what they all did. Anyways... a great time was had by all, regardless of the heat. Sabo got several compliments about how handsome he is... and two folks praised him for being so well behaved. Which he was... he was perfect.

Sabo's third Stadium

Sabo's Padres beat the Rangers 2-0. And this year... kinda like the All-Star game... this game counts !!!1! (in Sabo's second annual Dog Game Championship, details TBA).

Quote:

... This hotel is right in the Mill AveOld Town Scottsdale district, ... another premier Phoenix area bar zone adjacent to Arizona State UniversityScottsdale Stadium, spring home of the world champion San Francisco Giants... Monday after taking Sabo to the Chaparral Park dog run ... D headed back towards Lake Havasu, while Sabo & me drove south on AZ-85Maricopa Rd, then west to Gila Bend...

This time we stayed within walking distance of Scottsdale Stadium, where D was nice enough to take me went to see the Giants beat the D'backs 5-0 on a much cooler Sunday (no dogs). This is also a happening bar district, which we explored in depth after both games.

Dos Gringos Bar & Grill, Scottsdale, AZ

Spring training is always amazing... entire districts of the city where pretty much all the dudes are walking around wearing MLB gear and talking baseball. Sabo & me included. And in Scottsdale... especially considering the team is coming off the third recent World Series championship... it could have just been called 'Little San Francisco'.

Monday we took Sabo to Scottsdale's Chaparral Park dog runs. Contrary to what Google Maps insists (see map) the dog runs are on the far northern end of the park, parking off of Hayden south of McDonald. These are fenced runs ~ but very large and nice, so it doesn't really seem like an enclosure at all.

Quote:

... then west on I-8 to the Yuma area. We arrived ~5pm @112 degrees94℉. There we spent the night as guests of Sabo's Godfather B. After the sun went down, the three of us went on a short desert hike to/from a local 'Snow-Bird' Bar & Grill...

No trip to AZ would be complete for Sabo without a visit to is God-Uncle B. So that's what we did, of course. Instead of going into downtown Yuma, Sabo & B & me walked over to a local 'Snow Bird' Bar & Grill. After declaring the dish not fit for human consumption, B treated Sabo to a side of Poutine (very light cheese)... such is the fare they feature at these Snow-Bird bars.

Poutine (Canadian Gravy Fries)

Sabo had another fantastic road trip !!!1!

B, who is a keen observer of Sabo, and myself, both agreed that Sabo is now completely at home and comfortable with his new life... that's he's really coming into his own. And that's what 2015 The Year of Sabo is all about... Sabo entering his prime years.

So far, so good. And so busy... as Sabo & me are off today for another good canyon hike. Before I forget... and, as I promised... this post comes complete with new & improved maps. Click the map for my first, (hopefully kept) updated, and zoom-able, Sabo's Road Trips Google Map.

Well, no official Sabo Big Weekend™ this past weekend. What happened instead is I finally got around to getting the gates fixed... including posting the two "Beware of Dog" signs I got back on Sabo's birthday (pic above and at end). They were just basically falling apart after almost 60 years. Likewise, I finally installed the missing deadbolt on the back door.

BTW, none of the above were Sabo security issues. Of course, keeping a little doggy secure is a never ending job. Next up: (a) evaluating installing a doggy flap in the sliding glass door's screen door, re-attaching it's 'peg', and re-evaluating installing a gate on the front porch (as grandpa has mentioned again he'd like Sabo to be able to sit with him out there). Some of these projects might not turn out to be practical, however.

Of course, it is 2015 The Year of Sabo so we should expect big days that aren't on a weekend. This week in no exception. Today, I'm taking Sabo back to the pound... as it seems his license tag was only good for a year and needs to be renewed. We're also going on another segment of Sabo's Complete Trail Guide to the Tri-Canyon Parks... this one, strangely enough in Mission Valley.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

...How did Sabo's historical hikes go?

Balboa Park Koi Pond

It didn't go... Nothing was programmed at Chicano Park for Chavez... So... in a change of plans, we took Sabo to Balboa Park, and Petco Park...

But the best part was when Sabo leaned over too far and fell into the Koi pond in front of the Botanical Gardens. Well, at least we know he can swim now. Actually, he was the darling of the part of the park, as he crazily rolled around on the lawns drying himself off.

Sabo goes to Petco Park !!!1!

The Park at the Park @ Petco Park

And then finally, what Sabo's really been waiting for... a visit to Petco Park. We checked out the Park at the Park... But Sabo did get to stand high on the pedestal, between the giant metallic legs of Tony Gwynn...

Tomorrow is of course Chavez Day... and we know Sabo had an epic Chavez Day last year (above). So you just know we're going to do something special for Chavez Day this year too !!!1!. Again this year there isn't anything programmed for the actual day... we'll have to assume ourselves.

Our plan is to take advantage of a quirk in the calendar. Daylight Savings time now goes into effect in early March. Starting in April dogs cannot be on Mission Bay until after 6pm. So on Chavez day we have the longest dog-ok-on-the-bay daylight period of the year... from 4pm to sunset at 7:08pm. We're going to use that time to take a classic hike.

What we're going to do is make our second try at hiking the footpaths (not paws in the water) all the way around Mission Bay. This is truly a classic... Flower did it, The Missile did it (with her Uncle G), heck, even I did it for my first real hike as a child. It's also going to be Sabo 's longest hike, at 13.9 miles.

Hike around Mission Bay

Quote:

Originally Posted by Editor's Notes

Rank

Currently on the 'House of Blogs' front page: 1st in 'Last Post', 12th in 'Replies' (24th overall), and 12th in 'Views' (20th overall w/ 14255).

Typo

Post #130: The dogs were on the left field lawn @ the Peoria Sports Complex, not right field as blogged.

Broken Pic Links

Post #26: This was the above pic of Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner. OTOH the opossum pic linked in posts #66, #68, and #96 has come back from the dead !!!1!

[Monday], I'm taking Sabo back to the pound... as it seems his license tag was only good for a year and needs to be renewed. We're also going on another segment of Sabo's Complete Trail Guide to the Tri-Canyon Parks... this one, strangely enough in Mission Valley...

Only to do get his licence renewed. Three more years for $36.

We also went over to the HS/SPCA side to thank them, once again, for taking care of my little boy before he was my little boy. Then we hiked the SDG&E power-line, best we could, over to Peabody's Bar & Grill. Sabo's been on the dog-friendly patio here before with his God-Uncle B & me. We also visited a nice little condo park along Friars Rd.

Quote:

[Tuesday was] of course Chavez Day...

Our plan is to take advantage of a quirk in the calendar. Daylight Savings time now goes into effect in early March. Starting in April dogs cannot be on Mission Bay until after 6pm. So on Chavez day we have the longest dog-ok-on-the-bay daylight period of the year... from 4pm to sunset at 7:08pm. We're going to use that time to take a classic hike.

What we're going to do is make our second try at hiking the footpaths (not paws in the water) all the way around Mission Bay. This is truly a classic... Flower did it, The Missile did it (with her Uncle G), heck, even I did it for my first real hike as a child. It's also going to be Sabo 's longest hike, at 13.9 miles...

I should clarify that Chavez Day is the longest dogs-ok-on-the-beach-and-bay day in the afternoon at 3:08. There is also a 2:23 window in the morning on Chavez Day, giving the longest daily dog-ok time of the year at 5:31. The longest consecutive dog-ok time is actually in morning, June 7th-17th, at 3:20. There is also ~2:00 window in the afternoon then too. Times from timeanddate.com.

Sabo hiked all the way around !!!1!

After driving miles and miles across town... we started our Chavez Day at noon with a leash free romp on OTL Island. My little boy was going to be spending a long day on leash, and it's going to be dark by the time we're back around to here... so I figured he deserved this.

Then as a further warm-up, I drove us over to the San Diego River, and we then strolled the model airplane field. The Missile's master S was an avid flyer, and she visited here several times. We also strolled the very nice desert landscaped walk in the South Shores park. This was a first for both Sabo & me as this park area along the bay is all new since the Cinnamon era.

When we reached the 'No Dogs before 4pm' sign, just short of the main bayside Boardwalk, it was only 1pm. So we started off west, through the park's parking lot towards the Sea World parking lot.

Hike around Mission Bay

Leg

Time

Mls

MPH

OTL Island (warm-up)

12:00-12:30

.8

1.6

South Shores Park (warm-up)

12:45-1:15

.8

1.6

To San Rafael Pl

1:15-3:00

3.2

1.8

To Nature Preserve

4:00-5:30

2.7

1.8

To De Anza Cove

5:30-6:30

1.5

1.5

To VIC

6:30-7:08

.9

1.6

To Sea World parking lot

7:30-9:30

3.0

1.5

Around Bay

6:53 elapsed

11.3

1.6

Chavez Day

9:30 total

12.9

1.4

My astute (and perhaps singular) readesr might note that the trip around the bay listed in the table above is 2.6 miles shorter, and 2:23 hours longer, than shown on the map. The source for both mileages is from Google Maps. The 13.9 figure being from the Directions feature, while the 11.3 figure is from tracing the actual route on my (upcoming) Sabo's Hikes Map. The difference in the time is because Google assumes a walking speed of 3.1 MPH.

We finally started our hike around the bay at the employee parking lot entrance on the east side of the Sea World. This lot is held open to those hiking through, which we re-verified with the guard. This takes us right past the main gate to the amusement park (I asked, no dogs inside), and out the other side of the Sea World parking lot onto Perez Cove Wy.

From here it's necessary to go north, cross Ingraham St, then cut south across another park parking lot, to the Dana Inn. Past the Dana Inn, again because it was before 4pm, we needed to stay on West Mission Bay Dr, go over the bridge, then right onto Bayside Walk in Missile Beach. Even though it looks like a park path, Bayside Walk is actually a city street (closed to cars) from West Mission Bay Dr north to San Rafael Pl.

We got to San Rafael Pl at 3pm... north of here Bayside Walk is indeed a park path. We had an hour to kill before we could continue. So we backtracked to the Beach Shack, and took a short break. At 4pm, I took Sabo out to the beach for a short dipt, then we crossed over to the bayside, and continued on our hike.

At one point on the trip, going around Crown Point, Sabo just flaked out in the shade of a trash can. The Missile used to do this too... it must be a little dog thing. Anyways it seems he was just hot (it was in the high 70s), as in about five minutes he popped up again and was ready to go, go, go. This stretch of Boardwalk was built during the Cinnamon era, and I remember taking her to hike it when it was brand new.

New bridge over Rose Inlet in PB

Past Crown Point Park, there is another stretch that a dog can hike 24hrs... around the Nature Preserve and then over the new pedestrian bridge across Rose Cr. The bridge segment was new to both Sabo & me... as the bridge was built after the Cinnamon era. Before you had to detour around Mission Bay HS, then cross Rose Cr on Grand Av. We got to the long defunct Visitor Information Center at sunset. Here, my dogs (feet) were getting tired, even though my dog (pet) was still ready to go, go, go. So we took another short break and enjoyed watching the sunset fade.

I was surprised how many people were using the park for Chavez Day celebrations, or just out with their dogs, or walking or biking, after dark on a week night. It looked like every fire ring on OTL Island was in use... and the Boardwalk seemed busier. It was a beautiful night for all this however... clear, almost a full moon, with a nice cool breeze replacing a hot sun.

Once past the OTL Island causeway, we hiked the home stretch back to South Shores Park. This was also new to both Sabo & me. In the Cinnamon era this area was a closed off toxic dump... and you had to detour out to Sea World Dr to continue around the bay. Since then they've 'capped' the brown field, and built a Boardwalk along the bay shore. Besides a homeless dude riding his bike/trailer the other way... we had this part of the Boardwalk to ourselves. There are three 'nodes' with decorated walkways which looked pretty cool in the quite & solitude & moonlight.

Sabo had a great time... and he was ready to go, go, go some more. Gotta that Sabo !!!1!

Traditionally, opening day was always Monday, and only the Cincinnati and DC would host games. The Reds game would always start earlier, to honor Cincinnati as the birthplace of professional baseball. In Cincinnati opening day was a city holiday.

I've been to Cincinnati, and gone to opening day... but it was hardly a holiday for me...

Yeah, Baseball Opening Day still doesn't make a three-day weekend. However... Sabo is going to be spending some quality time gearing up for the new season today & tomorrow. He's already got his World Series prediction ready...

Spoiler:

Just add 31 to the year !!!1!

Sabo is predicting his Padres make their third World Series... and San Diego, the only major city (8th in the US) which has never had a major championship... finally gets it's first. Gotta that Sabo... he definitely 'has the faith' !!!1!

As well as being Ground-Dog Day, February 2nd is also Groundhog Day... the traditions of which form the background for the classic movie of the same name...

Historically the dogs have been much more accurate than the woodchucks. But let's see this year... so that woodchuck is predicting a 'second winter'... Sabo, as the ground-dog, is predicting an early spring. We'll see in the next six weeks who was correct...

Oh yeah, I almost forgot this contest. This March, most of which is in winter, was the warmest March in recorded history here, and this bone-dry drought has has extended into a fifth spring now. This year was clearly an example of an 'early spring'. Standings...

... Sabo is going to be spending some quality time gearing up for the new season today & tomorrow. He's already got his World Series prediction ready...

Just add 31 to the year !!!1!

Sabo is predicting his Padres make their third World Series... and San Diego, the only major city (8th in the US) which has never had a major championship... finally gets it's first. Gotta that Sabo... he definitely 'has the faith' !!!1!

Well, Sabo & me enjoyed the cavalcade of games on TV opening week... so no Sabo Big Weekend™. Upon further review, I am mildly optimistic about my Red Sox. So... without further ado... here are our picks for the 2015 (The Year of Sabo) MLB season...

Teams play 19 games against their division rivals. You'd think they'd each have the same number of home division games... but for some unknown reason you'd be wrong. Five teams have 39 home division games, 20 teams have 38, while five others have only 37.

Teams play seven games each against six randomly selected league rivals, even-ing out league home games. They play six games each against five other teams, one being inter-league: their natural, or unnatural, rival. This year Sabo's Padre's unnatural rival changes to the Rangers, while my Red Sox's unnatural rival rotates to the Phillies.

All the inter-league games are in matching divisions this year. This ensures that Sabo's Padres are once again excluded from Ontario, Canada... the Padres @ Blue Jays match-up is the only one never scheduled (Toronto has visited San Diego three times). Two of the inter-league teams are each played four games: two at home and two away. The remaining two inter-league teams are each played three games, all home or away... that's why the Angels don't play at Petco this year.

Twenty-eight teams usually start within 10 minutes of each other (7:05* to 7:15). Arizona and Colorado, the two MT teams, usually start a bit earlier (6:40).

All teams schedule a majority night games. Of course, the Cubs have the least (52%). The A's and Tigers have the second least (58%). The Dodgers scheduled the highest percentage (81%), followed by the Braves (80%). My Red Sox (65%), and Sabo's Padres (75%), are nearer the median.

For day games, 22 teams usually start within 15 minutes of each other (1:05 to 1:20). Typically, the Angels start a bit earlier (12:35)... while five other teams start a bit latter (1:35). The Rangers and Rockies regularly start about an hour later (2:05 to 2:10).

* All times PM & local. Source: MLB.COM. Note: As of opening day 33 games listed as "TBD".

The Nationals are scheduled into the only two local am games... losing 4-9 @ Boston on Monday, and at home vs the Giants on July 4th... both at 11:05 am edt. The Marlins are the only team to scheduled games at even hours… they have single 1 and 7 pm edt starts... every other game is a few minutes off an hour. The latest scheduled games are 8:05 pm local, the latest actual games are 44 Giant home games at 7:15 pm pdt.

A pre-game Sabo,
suited up for his game later that afternoon
in Peoria

They didn't hang around for a couple of months, like when they first ever appeared last year. This year they were gone in a week or so. In fact, I had forgotten about their existence. That is, until I noticed that the entire dirt pile these varmints liked, which had been piled up by the farmers a couple of years ago, had disappeared too. Grandpa moved it all using a pail in fact, as the wheelbarrow broke.

That little pile of dirt was also a favorite place for Sabo to flake out in the sun, or to stash his bones on top off. One thing I can say for sure about Sabo is... he s his Sabotat, and enjoys his 24/7 access to it.

Quote:

Editor's Notes

Rank: With this post, on the 2+2 House of Blogs front page, the Sabo-blog is #1 sorted by 'Last Post', #13 by 'Replies' (#25 overall), and #11 in 'Views' (#20 overall w/15224).

Errata Post #137:

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

... The Nationals are scheduled into the only two local am games... losing 4-9 @ Boston on Monday, and at home vs the Giants on July 4th... both at 11:05 am edt...

This is all wrong.

Basically I got the date of Patriots Day wrong... it's the third Monday in April. Patriot's Day is a state holiday in MA (and ME, which used to be part of MA). It's probably most famous for being the day the Boston Marathon is run. A newer tradition, dating for the 1960s, is having the Red Sox play a morning game at home too, at 11:05am. That game is usually the only actual morning game of the year.

This year there are two morning games... the Nationals play another at home, 11:05 am on Independence day. But this year it wasn't the Nationals losing the Patriot's day game in Boston (that score was from the 13th)... it was the Orioles losing 7-1 in a rain shortened seven inning game on the 20th.

Maybe... but only if you live in the State of Puebla, MX. It's a legal holiday there. Otherwise, LMFAO no.

Well... is it three day weekend if May Day falls on a Friday ??

Of course, like duh. Happy May Day Eve folks !!!1!

May Day, May 1st, is the most wonderful day of the year !!!1! It's makes a three day weekend when it falls Friday-Sunday, a four day weekend when it falls on Tuesday or Thursday, and a nine day 'weekend' when it falls on a Wednesday. Read up on the origins of May Day at IWW.org.

Tomorrow afternoon, Sabo & me are going downtown, back to San Diego's oldest park... Pantoja Park. That's where this years big May Day parade is going to begin and end... with speeches before and after. We're not 'tabling' this year... so we can just enjoy the day. It was hot today, into the high 80s, but the forecast is for cooler weather tomorrow... nothing like last years 100+ Santa Ana.

Pantoja Park, site of 2015 May Day Rally !!!1!

Hopefully, disaster won't strike twice... and Sabo won't hurt me this year. I can't say I really lost any mobility... but I definitely had some permanent damage last year. That knee will get slightly sore after a long day of hiking with Sabo... and I definitely don't like going down steep hillsides (which we've done a few of doing Sabo's Complete Trail Guide to the Tri-Canyon Parks) at all anymore.

From last year...

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

Again, not at all as planned.

On May Day there was a full Santa Ana blowing... 100 degrees, with periodic bone-dry gusts up to 30 mph.

That morning Sabo & me set out and drove... for miles and miles it seems... across town to my beach house, where I stuffed a folding table and a few lawn chairs into the minvan. Then we drove... again for miles and miles it seems... to Chicano Park.

From here, Sabo and me set out on foot directly to City College. This is about two miles, and while not really steep, is all up-hill. Then quickly walked the compact urban campus. At that point I had one tired and hot little doggy... and Sabo flaked out on the campus front lawn, under the big tree, and took a nice nap.

Sabo had a nice nap here...
and here I let slip his leash

Then something, something, something happened... and I lost hold of Sabo's turbo-leash. Sabo started going downhill, across the lawn, towards busy Park Blvd. I ran down the hill to stop him, and right in the middle of the sidewalk, stomped down on the turbo leash.

And that's where disaster struck, for me at least... that turbo-leash slipped out from under my right foot like a banana peel. The other knee buckled, and all 200lbs of my fat behind came straight down on my left knee's inside face. No... knees aren't made to bend that way.

Luckily we weren't alone.

This lawn was the rally point for the big May Day parade. Right next door, San Diego HS was just getting out. In fact several HS students took Sabo's pic. Several hundred people had nothing better to do than watch the cute little dog and his clumsy master's slapstick pratfall.

Sabo reached me first, but was soon joined by several people, including a nurse who was working the parade. He offered Sabo & me a ride... but I walked it out a bit, and said I'd try to see if I could make the downhill three mile parade first. He said fine... they gotta 'sag-wagon' following the parade, so I could just stop and get a ride if I changed my mind.

Luckily, I wasn't hurt much... just some scrapes, and a pretty good Grade I MCL sprain. However, I realized a few blocks into the parade that, although I could indeed march the parade, I was straggling...

After the march, Sabo & me got the gear out of the minvan, and helped table during the after march program @ Chicano Park. It's always amazing who you meet on May Day. This year, E came up and asked if I remembered her. E is quite attractive, so of course I did... but I wasn't placing her from activism. We actually knew each other from back in the Cinnamon era, when he was a server on the night shift, working her way through grad school. Now she's a tenured teacher, activist, and organizer...

... Of course, like duh. Happy May Day Eve folks !!!1... May Day, May 1st, is the most wonderful day of the year !!!1!... Read up on the origins of May Day at IWW.org.

[Friday] afternoon, Sabo & me are going downtown, back to San Diego's oldest park... Pantoja Park. That's where this years big May Day parade is going to begin and end... with speeches before and after. We're not 'tabling' this year... so we can just enjoy the day...

No disasters on Mayday this year... just a great day. The local NBC station estimated about 400, although that seemed a little low (Nadin Abbott photo above).

However... the next night, just before midnight, some a-holes were celebrating Mayday a day late I guess. It was a warm night, so all the windows were open. Sabo, who was sleeping, bolted for Grandpa's room when the first firework popped-off. I called him back, and hugged my shivering-with-fear little boy tight until he fell back asleep. Twice more, seemingly timed just far enough apart for a scared little dog to fall asleep, the fireworks disturbed Sabo & me.

Home team in bold.
* Cactus League game @ Peoria AZ.
& California League game @ San Bernardino, CA.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

[2014] Dog Day of Summer !!!1!

... The White Sox invented Dog Day in 1996 when they moved into Cell Phone Field. The Padres, of course, had to start doing a Dog Day when they moved into Petco Park in 2004. These dog tickets are always hard to get... Cinnamon got shut out the first two years of Petco, then four more years at Cell Phone Field.

[In 2014], there are 40 MLB Dog Days, held at 20 MLB venues. You'd have to charter a plane to go to a Dog Day at every venue... but could reasonably drive a road trip to 18 of them. The Pirates play and host the most (11 and 9 respectively). The Reds play in the second most, and are the most frequent visiting team (9 and 5)...

That's enough games to crown a MLB Dog Day Champion. The schedule guarantees at least two undefeated Dog Day teams... Sabo will be going to two Dog Days [in 2014's] summer !!!1!

This year the same 20/30 teams are again having dog days. The number of individual regular season MLB games is up to four to 44 this year. The Pirates are, again, the most dog-friendly team with pretty much every Tuesday being a dog day (10 total). The Nationals (6), Reds (4), and Mets (4) also scheduled more than two dog-days. Six teams are scheduled for three dog days on the road. The Pirates play in front of the dogs the most (11), followed by the Nationals (9) and Reds (7).

Unlike last year, you could have driven around to all 22 dog-day venues listed above, and an undefeated team wasn't guaranteed. But it's too late now to start driving, and the Rays have already finished their dog days at 1-0.

Similar to the Pirates, pretty much every Monday home game for the San Bernardino based Inland Empire 66ers is "Bring Your Best Friend" Night. In addition to some MLB games, I'm planning on taking Sabo to see his Padre's High Class A team, the Lake Elsinore Storm, play there in August.

As promised, here are the 2015 rule changes for Sabo's Dog-Day Championship: (1) In addition to all regular season MLB dog days, spring training games, and minor league games, that Sabo actually attend also count. Minor league game outcomes count on their MLB affiliates record. And (2), games above .500 will determine the champion, instead of winning percentage as in 2014. Tie-breakers will be winning percentage, most home games, head-to-head, then by stats.

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Editor's Notes

Rank: On the 2+2 House of Blogs front page, with this post, the Sabo-blog is #1 by 'Last Post', #13 by 'Replies' (#23 overall), #11 by 'Views' (#18 overall w/ 15938).

Errata Post #141: Two things. I forgot to blog the score for the first regular season dog day this year: 4-18, Phillies 5, Nationals 3 @ DC. Also, I incorrectly said six teams tied for most road dog days with three. Actually, the Phillies have four road dog days scheduled.

I'm sure my (perhaps singular) readers were frustrated. Sure, there's plenty of dog days around MLB. People wanna know: which ones are Sabo going to ?? Well... as I previously blogged, three were easy picks... at Peoria, at Petco, and a random California League MiLB game.

As for the other two... well just like San Bernardino, Los Angeles is just a day-trip. The ticket prices were a different issue... $167.10+parking for 2 people & Sabo. At least these are All-You-Can-Eat tickets. Which seems like just a mistake for the dog section, but's that's how they did it last year... so I guess it works. I envision Dodger Dogs in Sabo's future...

The Bay Area, OTOH, is a several overnights in hotels trip. Also, it's a longer drive than Phoenix, and is typically a more expensive region. Also, the Giants aren't shy about cashing in on their recent championships. Sabo's ticket to the Giants game is the most I've ever spent on a regular season MLB ticket !!!1! Instead of the $176 for two peeps and a dog... across the bay, earlier in the same month, the A's are having their dog day... $6/dog, $12/person, before fees. But... I've been to the Oakland Mausoleum before, I've never been to AT&T Park.

I really had one of those 'Should I Push Buy' moment ~ a particular commercial the NFL ran a few years about touting their ticket exchange kept going through my mind. Of course, in that commercial everything turned out fantastic ~ so after hesitating, I felt compelled to go ahead and smashed that 'buy' button. Gotta that Sabo !!!1!

Quote:

Editor's Notes:Second Errata Post #141: Wow, I really messed up this post. I knew I shouldn't have rushed it like I did...

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

... This year the same 20/30 teams are again having dog days...

Wrong !!! Nineteen of the 20 are the same. The Rockies, who didn't have a dog day in 2014 have a home dog day in 2015. The Indians don't have any home dog days in 2015, after having one in 2014.

Seventeen years ago today, a pure-bred Boston Terrier puppy, with almost perfect markings, was born in a TN breeding kennel. They named her 'Cinnamon Stick' after her very beautiful and very rich brown coat.

A few weeks later she was shipped off, for well into four figure$$$$, to a wealthy man in LA's San Fernando Valley. Less than a year later, he relinquished the completely wild little doggy to the local Boston Rescue. He said an older female dog was "beating the puppy up".

That chillingly sad little note is all we'll ever know about Cinnamon's puppy-hood. Of course, we know even less about Sabo's (the new dog) puppy-hood.

What we do know is that she turned out OK. She later earned the title, and became known as, 'The Missile'. In her own way, she was an extraordinary dog, and famously popular. More important... She was a good little dog.

I blogged the above a year ago this very day in this very blog... so today's the eighteenth anniversary of the little Missile's birth. I was going to write a little more about what we know of her back story... but it's been a little hard to type here this evening.

So... while I blogged this paragraph: Well, first off, Sabo was sleeping between me and the keyboard. He was lying on his side, with his back along the front of the lap-top, and his paws up against me. And he was deep in REM. Besides the clearly visible eye movement (rapid of course, he's Sabo)... in his dream he was wiggling his little paws and twitching his tail, lightly up against me. I didn't wanna disturb him, so it was slow typing while reaching over him. Then, dream over, he got up, and went and had a long drink of water. His bowl is behind me, but I can hear him lapping it up, of course. I'd know anyway, if I checked his grey 'beard'... as that gets wet when he drinks. Finally, he came back, and flaked out next to me and the lap-top, on his side, his paws touching me again... with his tail over the mouse pad. There... let me move it off to the side (it's so cool to finally have a dog with a tail).

So... I was going to blog a little more about the days before Cinnamon was The Missile, and I gotta 'nother pic kink gone bad. But the above reminded me of a different story. Back after Cinnamon was The Missile, for example like when her master S & me & the boyz might be sitting around up in The Valley, having a beer after work... I'd do the above with our little girl's antics. And S would say to me: "Cut out the play-by-play of the damn dog !!!1!". Good times.

So... I was going to blog. But yeah, I miss that little Missile... how can you not, she's got 'miss' built right into her name. But now, when I miss her, I can just reach out and give Sabo a pat on his back... or I nice rubbing on the side. And then Sabo stretched out a little, but he's seems pretty comfortable, as he didn't roll over on his back to get his belly scratched. He does that some time... where he'll turn his head to the side. He was so comfy laying there I didn't wanna roust him to give him a hug. So I bent down and gave him a little kiss on the side instead.

So... I know, I know. Stop with the live-blogging the damn dog !!!1! Suffice to say, when I miss The Missile, I give Sabo some TLC. Gotta that Sabo.

So... I'm going to save that story, and correction. And I'm going to go give Sabo a bone his uncle C brought by earlier. Cause... well, see above.

One thing Flower had in common with Sabo is not liking those pesky pole climbers.

A few weeks ago Sabo was home alone guarding the house. We returned to find AT&T up our pole. The tech was working on the service to the Chihuahua's house, and had leaned her ladder up against over the fence from that yard. I could tell she had been up there a while. Sabo was laying down at the base of the pole, and strategically in the shade of a garden shed, giving just an intermittent yap or two up at her. I brought him in.

Today Sabo was yapping seeming off into space. However... I noticed he was actually yapping over at a TWC dude up another poll in another yard... the next pole down the line on the other side. I left him out.

Flower didn't like blimps going over her yard either. She'd see a blimp, and she'd start barking. And those pesky blimps would steer clear and hurry on their way... worked 100% of the time. I'm not sure how Sabo feels about blimps... haven't noticed any lately.

News of Sabo's
Dog Day Championship ~ 2016

5-16

Brewers 1

Garza 3⅓ 10

@ Mets 14

DeGrom 6 1

Dog Day !!!1!

5-18

Indians

C.Kluber -135

@ White Sox

C.Sale +150

Dog Day !!!1!

5-19

Twins

Nolasco

@ Pirates

Liriano

Dog Day !!!1!

Probables from mlb.com. Odds from bovada.com 5:10 pdt.

Saturday the Mets (2-1) moved into a virtual tie for first with a 14-1 spanking of the Brewers (0-2, eliminated) in front of the Citi-dogs.

Right about now the Indians and White Sox play their first dog game of the season at Cell Phone Field. The White Sox start their defense of last year's Sabo Dog Day Championship... but with only one other dog game, face elimination if they lose. The Indians were eliminated before their first game, but are looking to go undefeated in their only dog game.

Tomorrow, the Twins (0-1, eliminated) face the Dogs of Tuesday in Pittsburgh (0-2).

Quote:

Editor's Corner

Rank: Posts #16 (#25 overall), Views #13 (#19 overall w/16441)

Sabo's Favorite Resturant ~
Bull's Smokin BBQ

Broken Pix Link, Post #35: The broken pix captioned "Bull's Smokin' BBQ is dog friendly" was similar, if not identical, to the above.

Last Monday, the White Sox (1-0) beat the Indians (0-1, done) in the 10th, 2-1, to keep their dream of back-to-back Sabo Dog Day Championships alive. Tuesday the Twins (1-1, done) beat the Pirates (0-3) by a score of 8-5.

This extended Memorial weekend in front of the dogs features the Phillies (1-0) at the Nationals (1-1) on Saturday. The Phillies (1-0) look to move into undisputed first place, while the Nationals (1-1) are trying to move into a virtual tie for first. Also, on Tuesday, it's the Rockies (0-0) at the Reds. The Reds (2-1) will be looking to move into undisputed first -or- a virtual tie for first.

... Memorial Day Weekend is traditionally the official start of the beach tourist season. So the theme for Sabo's big weekend is going to be... Sabo goes to the beach !!!1!

It's time to see if Sabo is really a water dog... so we're going back to OTL Island, and Dog Beach...

But the highlight for Sabo might well be [the...] overnight road trip... we're going to be tourists ourselves, and spend four nights and five days in Missile Beach !!!1!...

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

... Independence Day weekend is the biggest, busiest, day at the beach. So Sabo's going back to the Beach Shack for four nights. It's still an open question if Sabo is really a 'water dog', so... the theme for Sabo's Big Weekend is...

Sabo swims from La Jolla to Ocean Beach and...Sabo swims all the way around Mission Bay,includingexcludingthe islands.

Of course, where Sabo isn't allowed to swim, he can hike those shorelines, or as near to the shore as possible. However... the Sabo Twist is: no going over bridges...

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

... Labor Day is the traditional end of the tourist season, but not summer itself... So what will Sabo be doing for this four-day weekend? Well we're going to spend six days/five nights at the beach shack... And we're going to make another attempt at this...

Sabo swims here !!!1!
The third time's the charm ???/?

Wow !!!1! Who can believe Sabo & me are starting our second summer season together? Time sure flies when you get to spend it with a good little dog like Sabo.

Last year, on the three big season holidays: On Memorial weekend we visited six beaches in five days, most off-leash for Sabo. My knee was still too messed up for any hikes. For the 4th and Labor Day weekends we unsuccessfully attempted to have Sabo swim from La Jolla yo OB, and around Mission Bay. So...

For Sabo's Big Weekend™ were going to try it again. Five days, four nights at the beach shack included. In case it isn't obvious, we're going to do this Pulp Fiction style. Notice, however, we're going to exclude the islands this time. Getting to the islands without using any bridges is actually a whole different Sabo Twist... and it's really a Lack-of-a-Bridge too far, so to speak, to do in one Sabo Big Weekend™.

Quote:

Editor's Corner:

Rank: Posts #17 (#24 overall), Views #13 (#19 overall w/16660).

Typo, Post #144: The caption below the dog day pix should read "~2015" not "~2016".

'Mistake' on post #145: Yeah, I had my third 'mistake' and ended up posting under the Shame Trolly !!!1! SN again, instead of the MissileDog SN. I was originally planning on the previous post and this post being one. However... I inadvertently hit 'post' instead of 'preview' while writing it up, and didn't realize this until after the delete time-out.

Wait, wat... I'm sure my (perhaps singular) readers are wondering... what about last Sabo Big Weekend™, you know where Sabo was finally going to get to swim from La Jolla to OB? Well... what happened is it rained. Surprisingly enough, it rained both Friday and Monday afternoons.

It didn't rain a whole lot, and it's not like it matters if the beach gets wet. But it just wasn't pleasant beach weather. Now I would have preferred a little early June Gloom as opposed to bright sun like we had the last few weeks before. But we basically had cold blustery winds with dark skies.

Sabo's Rock & Roll Marathon ~ 2014 Course shown.

Now Sabo, ... he don't care, he's a go dog, and he was surely disappointed last weekend. But such is life as a dog. He'll get his chance to make that swim, I promise. But it won't be this weekend... because it's time for Sabo to run another marathon !!!1!

The humans have the same course every year it seems. Sabo, OTOH, must take a different course (as dogs aren't allowed to officially enter)... and so is free to experience some variety. One segment I'd like him to 'run' would be the stretch up the freeway (CA-163). That would be some rare paw mileage indeed. But there's no bands listed on the freeway, and I'm going to guess only entrants, and not spectators, are allowed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

Mode

Segments

Time

Miles

MPH

Missilating

2

1:25

20.4

14.4

Running

2

0:02

0.2

6.0

Walking

7

2:10

5.6

2.6

Cabs/Cars

2

1:00

15.8

15.8

Watch/Explore

6

3:43

More on the [2014] R&R Marathon... That's more than an hour longer than the winner's time of 2:23:50. He also lost a more important race that same day... Yep, he finally wasn't the fastest dog at the park...

Sabo will be looking to improve his time of 3:37 last year. Also I'm proud to report that Sabo hasn't been bested as 'fastest dog in the park' since last year either. He's still only lost a 'race' once.

I'm considering two routes (a) concentrate on Balboa Park, and it's three dog runs, and down to Petco. This year, however, the Padres play a night game at home... so there won't be a game to watch at The Park @ The Park. Or (b) hike the entire length of the marathon hitting as many bands as possible, on up past Mission Bay, extending it up one of the canyons to one of the dog parks up there (as part of the ongoing Sabo's Complete Trail Guide to the Tri-Canyon Parks project). Then take Rosie Ruiz's cab back downtown to Petco for the finish line. This would make a one real long linear hike all the way from downtown... Sabo's longest ever.

Last Saturday, in front of the dogs, the Phillies beat the Nationals 8-1, to move in to undisputed first place. On Tuesday the Reds (3-1) beat the Rockies 2-1, to move into a virtual tie.

Tomorrow the Rockies travel to Philadelphia. The Phillies (2-0) will be looking to open up an even bigger lead, while the Rockies (0-1) face elimination with a loss. This Wednesday the Blue Jays (0-1, eliminated) travel to Washington (1-2).

... it's time for Sabo to run another marathon !!!1!... One segment I'd like him to 'run' would be the stretch up the freeway (CA-163). That would be some rare paw mileage indeed. But there's no bands listed on the freeway, and I'm going to guess only entrants, and not spectators, are allowed...

Actually one band, is ambiguously listed as being at mile 20.6 & at "163 (Washington/6th)". So I figured I'd ask the R&RM folks about that (below). So... game on !!!1! Sabo & me will be playing on the freeway tomorrow morning.

The tentative plan is to start at the start line, and follow the race's course to CA-163. There we'll attempt to walk the freeway north to Friars Rd. This will be in the normal direction of vehicle traffic... and the opposite direction of the Marathon. The world-class runners should just be getting onto the freeway when we are getting off. Then we'll follow the race's course west on Friars Rd to Mission Bay, then extend onto OTL Island, to get Sabo some off-leash time. Next we'll take Rosie Ruiz's cab to the Grape St dog run in Balboa Park, for more off-leash action. Finally the plan is to cut through the golf course, and down to Pershing Dr & the race's course again... which we then follow downtown to the finish line next to Petco Park.

Quote:

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissileDog

Sirs,

I'm a spectator. I noticed that the course goes up a freeway, SR-163, and a band is listed as on the freeway.

My question is this: are spectators allowed on the freeway during the Marathon? Could I watch the Marathon, and the band on the freeway, while walking the freeway from Hillcrest to Mission Valley? If so, can I also walk, as a spectator, with my dog?

TYVM

Hi [Sabo's Master],

Thanks for contacting us. We prefer that spectators not enter the 163, but we are not going to be denying access. We do ask that you use caution, stay to the side (a ramp or hillside) perhaps not actually on the freeway. We also need you to be clear of that area at noon. Other spots we suggest for this portion of the course are the Washington Street Overpass or the University Street overpass for safer viewing options.